EVENT 38 ANNOUNCES SUCCESSFUL BVLOS PIPELINE INSPECTION DEMO WITH FIXED-WING VTOL DRONE
Press Release
Event 38 Announces Successful BVLOS Pipeline Inspection Demo with Fixed-Wing VTOL Drone
Richfield, Ohio — Event 38 Unmanned Systems, a leading manufacturer of American-made mapping drones, announces that a successful BVLOS pipeline patrol demo has been completed using the E455, Event 38’s largest fixed-wing vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drone.
The demo was executed by Phoenix Air Unmanned (PAU), a drone service provider that specializes in aerial inspection and surveillance for utilities.
300 Miles of Pipeline in a Day
The demo was a proof-of-concept exercise to determine whether PAU could achieve the goal of patrolling 300 miles of pipeline, owned by Shell Pipeline Corporation, with a drone in just one day.
We woke up to a two-hour delay with fog, so we crossed the 300-mile mark at noon on the second day. But our goal was achieved within a day of flying time, so it was a success.
Will Wheeler / Director of Operations, Phoenix Air Unmanned
Trained, Integrated, Flying
Wheeler credits much of the demo’s success to the user-friendly design of the E455.
“Ease of use and reliability is a big deal for us. We have the foundational knowledge of how to execute BVLOS flights at scale, however we had never flown the E455 before. We received training, the E455 was integrated, and then we were out there doing 300 miles. What will we be capable of once our whole crew has experience with this platform and it’s truly integrated into our workflow? It’s repeatable and scalable.”
Will Wheeler / Director of Operations, Phoenix Air Unmanned
Equipped for BVLOS
For the purposes of the demo, the E455 was outfitted with:
Drone communications were handed off between three ground control vans to increase efficiency, and ground control received a constant live video feed from the E455’s on-board cameras. Thanks to the E455’s bonded radio solution, the drone never lost signal with PAU.
Even with the abundance of equipment required for a BVLOS mission, the E455 flew for up to sixty minutes on a single charge. With a standard payload, the E455 can fly for over two hours on a single charge. In optimal conditions, the E455 can travel at 50 miles per hour.
“This demo was an excellent opportunity for us to learn more about how the E455 operates in real-world scenarios and make some other modifications that will translate to a better user experience going forward.”
Mathew Wright / VP of Engineering & Operations, Event 38
Event 38 designs and manufactures fixed-wing VTOL drones in Richfield, Ohio. Since 2011, we’ve sold over 500 drones to people and organizations all around the globe. Our drones capture geo-tagged data for a range of industries and applications. Event 38 drones can be customized for high-resolution aerial photogrammetry, thermal and multispectral imagery, LiDAR, and live video streaming.
Reach out to discuss how the E455’s capabilities could support your operation.
